Re: Who is Jim?

Michael Ambrosio,
Do ya really wanna know??? or is it only a rhetorical question?
OK. But first my response to your various comments you made in your post http://friendsinbusiness.com/board1/index.cgi?read=92897 and then I'll tell you a little about myself.

> We could go round and round, but why waste the time :)

You keep referring to "wasting time" in your previous posts on the subject, yet you take the time to post your comments. So, why do YOU waste YOUR time if it isn't worth the time?

> I think there are good points on ALL sides here. It comes down to whether
> a person is willing to delete messages from time to time to get products.
> The very nature of those JV's are to build lists. Whether or not the
> product offerings are any good is a matter of opinion - not fact. One
> man's trash, etc etc.

I agree... that there are good points on both sides. And as I stated before, I don't have a problem with the marketing technique within itself, however I do have a problem if there is a disclaimer as Larry originally pointed out, as I do feel that the individual(s) should have responsibility for those they allow into such ventures. It indirectly reflects upon their own credibility to allow "just anyone" into their marketing efforts. As Patti pointed out, not only as a consumer, but as a business owner, you should do your due diligence before taking action. This is how we should act in order to best protect ourselves from those undesirable elements we wish to avoid. As far as the "one man's trash"... there are opinions posted here and that is why this board was set up by Lesley, to offer people the opportunity to express those opinions, so that we can stay away from those who are promoting "trash". It is not only opinion, as there are scams out there that prey on the unknowledgable. I also have been one of those, like Lesley, who went through my share of biz ops and lost a bit of money (although not near as much as she did, thank goodness). I learned a lot from the experience and while some of the Info Products I bought had some good information... if you dug deep enough, most were only selling dreams. Then again, knowledge is not free, as can be attested by the tuitions you pay for college or whether you're buying Rudl's or someone elses "how-to" information. But, there's no education like real world experience, so I just chalk it up to a learning experience.

> Are there spammers in the mix? Sure. Not everyone is on the up and up
> about those things. But you could NOT sign up for a single one of those
> JV's and still get spammed.

See above about "due diligence" and "credibility". As well as a previous post where I stated "trust is built slowly... but can be lost in only a moment." However, there is a difference in getting spammed by someone who harvested emails or hacked a database to get your email address and joining a list that was sold to a spammer.

> The biggest perpetuator I have run across has been Hotmail. I did a test
> once. I opened an account on Hotmail and Yahoo, and NEVER published the
> addresses. After 30 days, my Hotmail account was full. All spam. Yahoo, on
> the other hand, is STILL empty (even after two years) except for their
> messages.

We are in agreement again... One of my first recommendations is NEVER use Hotmail unless you're only looking for a temporary mailbox for something like opting into some of these JVs. It's run by MS and since MS is the biggest, they are the also the biggest target for hackers, as well (no, I don't have a problem with Bill Gates and his company, in fact I strongly respect him for building such a company from the ground up and finding success).

> Also, the fact that you never heard of Cody doesn't mean a thing, really.
> I have not heard of MANY MANY people who are very successful. So that was
> really a pointless comment.

The point is not so much as to whether I have heard of Cody. It was about his disclaimer and his possible associations, which was the initial point being made by Larry. So, I attempted to do my "due diligence", which led to nowhere... which takes us back to the "building of trust". That means you have to "become known" as someone with integritiy, not only in yourself, but those you associate with. If you start an Anti-Spam site such as www.optoutbydomain.com (which is a great idea and recommended), but for the sake of argument, if they sold email addresses to marketing companies that spammed (which they don't, remember this is hypothetical), then they would lose their credibility by association. Why would I trust Cody if he is going to allow just anyone into a JV without doing his due diligence and trying to insure his associations will only reflect positively for him? If one spammer gets through, he might be able to apologize, but it still put negative thoughts in peoples minds. If two get through, it would be difficult to overcome the negative backlash that could be unleashed from the "association" of undesirables. While it should be up to the consumer to do their due diligence, most do not. So, as a business, we must go one step further and do our best to insure the perceptions by our customers will be positive, lest we find ourselves being talked about on one of the many forums (such as this one) as being a SCAM.

> And for what it's worth, I too know Cody (but not Pete - sorry). He hasn't
> spammed me yet.

> So who is Jim? Tell us about yourself . . .
> Regards,
> Michael

SO... Who is Jim???
I'll try to keep this as brief as possible (but I am known to get "wordy").
I started working when I was 14. I'm getting real close to 51 now... boy, time does fly! I've spent most of my life in customer service and the last 10 years in sales.
I worked for a billion-plus dollar, Fortune 500 corporation for over 19 years. The last twelve of those years in Technical Support and as a Training Instructor. In addition to developing and teaching technical courses on the products they sold and serviced, I also taught security, customer relations, and computers.

I started looking into business ops in the early 90's and (like Lesley) learned quite a bit... both good and bad. I finally settled on the Surplus/Liqidation business. I spent $4000 on the course and thousands more over the next couple of years trying to make it work. Yes, I also bought the ACL book that Lesley talks about on this website. The company that sold me the biz-op (Suplus Agents of America) is out of business and last I heard, they were being investigated by the US Post Office for mail fraud (they sent me a form to fill out for their investigation) and other federal departments for fraud. However, the good side is... I did learn something. This led me to getting involved into the internet side of marketing. I've been on the internet since 1996 (web infancy) and designed and maintain my own website.

Although at this time, I also work for a company and I have been the top sales person in my department almost since I started with them (typically twice the sales of other salespersons)... in my private business, I am a licensed auctioneer and have sold a bit of real estate (my license is currently inactive, as it was a "side" of my auction services that I'm not actively persueing at this time). The one thing that stands out in my personal success is the comments I receive from my customers... my honesty, knowledge, and taking the time to help them. This all comes down to integrity from building trust.

My current plans... I recently lost my building lease, so I'm looking for another location to get my auctions going again.
Also in my plans... I'm also in the research, planning/design phases of building two websites:
1. A CONTENT RICH website aimed at business... from business start-up to marketing and web building, and hopefully help others to avoid the scams.
2. A website aimed at the auction industry... from live auctions to online auctions. Once again... to dispel they myths, misinformation and scams and provide real inside knowledge from someone who is IN the business.
Yes, I know, there are lots of those out there (I do my research), just like there is a lot of competition in any business, including most of the things the people on this forum are doing. What do I have to offer that the others don't? I guess part of it is the "teacher" in me and my earnest desire to help others from getting ripped off. But, what do I have to lose? A few dollars? (ha! done that!)... What will I gain? Maybe a few dollars... I'm not looking to get rich, but if it's profitable and I can help others, then it's definitely a worthwhile venture.

That's me... in a nutshell.
So... Who's Michael?
Yes, I'll do my due diligence, but perhaps you'd like to eloborate beyond your sales page mini-site for script installation info... or your "host-me-pay-me" web-host offering. I'm not sure about your hosting, but the script info sounds good. I signed up to get your Forms Building Secrets Ecourse to evaluate... maybe I might consider the other scripts info. I'm assuming you won't spam me ;)
Who knows... maybe I'll be recommending your site on one of mine.

Jim